Leo can literally arrive any day now! If y’all haven’t made predictions on the exact date, sex, name, and other baby stats be sure to visit Leo’s Baby Pool!
Also if you plan to meet our baby in person PLEASE read this post to help keep our baby healthy!!!
Recently they have changed the terminology so 37 weeks is NOT considered “full term” anymore. I won’t be full term until 39 weeks (if I go that far!). While it’s a bit frustrating to not be able to say I’m “full term” I totally appreciate the change in the verbiage! You can read more about why they have made the changes (which makes SO MUCH SENSE) here! I am currently considered “Early Term” 🙂
Baby Growth: Assuming I go to 39 weeks (full term) the baby will be spending these next two weeks growing and maturing his or her brain and lungs! Leo is weighing roughly 6 1/3 pounds and measuring 19 inches (length of a bunch of swiss chard…whatever that is!) Most babies are born with a full head of hair. I’ve never heard that before?!?! That is surprising! I appreciate the reminders of what may happen leading up to labor…you can read the list here!
My Symptoms: The pressure is crazy!!! Every time I use the bathroom I mentally prepare myself for the baby to just come right on out into the toilet haha. My privates (both the “womanhood” and the booty) literally HURT with pressure. I am still in total shock that this baby is SO HIGH up there still! I can’t imagine this pressure getting more intense!
Speaking of using the bathroom…everything down there also just feels different. It feels more swollen and more open and ready for baby pushin’ business.
My back pain is still pretty minimal this week which is a blessing for sure! I mostly just hurt when getting up from sitting/laying rather than the constant pain I was having before. Maybe that chiropractor worked?!?!
While the pressure is low and heavy feeling…I feel like the baby is also SO HIGH (which obviously based on my appointment yesterday it IS high). Up until my appointment I was thinking that this child will have to be the longest of the three yet because I can feel it so, so high in my stomach but also have that pressure. Now I realize that the baby is just high and the pressure isn’t from the head at all haha.
I’ve had strange ear issues where it feels like my ears are under water. I had Stacy check yesterday and she said they look good but it’s an odd feeling that comes and goes. Hoping some sudafed will help!
We FINALLY did some Bradley relaxation prior to Zach leaving for out of town. We did it two nights in a row and it’s really like riding a bike. I have had a good bit of anxiety about labor and worrying mostly that I won’t remember how to properly relax through the contractions. Our practice really helped ease my worries because I instantly remembered how to fully relax 🙂
Being solo mom this week was not as tough as it has been in the past. I really do feel better overall than I have in awhile! I didn’t think I was overdoing it AT ALL and felt like I had a really good balance going. Obviously, with everything I experienced Thursday, I was wrong and must have still been overdoing it haha! So I guess I need to try even harder to take it even easier from here on out!
Kye has been doing a chore notebook now. I made him a simple spreadsheet with a list of chores to do each day as well as a separate list of chores to choose from to complete one each day. Why in the WORLD didn’t I do this earlier in pregnancy? Child LOVES it and it’s a HUGE help for me! One day this week he chose to clean his toilet and he loved it so much he asked if he could clean the downstairs ones too. Um…YES! 🙂 The house is staying a little cleaner and I’m not having to do as much work…win win!
Zach was out of town most of this week. I REALLY felt like I had a good balance down and never felt like I was doing too much. However, I guess I was overdoing it and just not realizing it?!?! Thursday things got ROUGH and I legit though this baby was coming! You can read more about what all went down here 🙂 Thankful I did NOT have to go through labor solo and now that Z is back he SHOULD be home and nearby from here on out 😉
Weight: FINALLY remembered to weigh in! I actually weighed early in the week and then again at the end and am at 26 lbs total. I’m officially over what I weighed with my last pregnancy when Britt was born 🙁 But I’m still plenty under what I weighed with Kye. My hope is not to hit the 30 lb marker. We’ll see what happens! But I’m seriously not stressing it too much and I REALLY think a LOT of it is water weight. Being summer I’m so much more swollen than I ever remember being and feel like everything just looks PUFFY! I’ve heard that the puffiness goes away after birth so hopefully I will feel and look a whole lot better pretty quickly 😉
Gender: If y’all have read Leo’s baby name hints then you know we are using some VERY random names. Like names I’ve never met another child having. Guess what happened this week? While out and about I overheard a mother talking to her daughter and used one of the names we have chosen for Leo!!! I about DIED! It made me think maybe it’s a sign that Leo is a girl?!?! I mean what are the chances of that happening?!?!? Also this week in a thread on a group I’m a member of on Facebook someone started talking about pregnancy symptoms and if they really are a true sign of if the baby is a boy or girl. Almost everyone who responded said they assumed their kid was one gender b/c it was a pregnancy so much like their other pregnancy that resulted in a certain gender (like I think Leo is a boy based on my pregnancy being SO MUCH like mine with Kye) but that they were WRONG. So now I’m totally torn haha I keep mentally picturing it either way and am SO pumped to find out 🙂
Maternity Clothes: It’s all I wear! I’ve officially worn all the cute things I had in a pile to “make sure I wore” so now I’m in the re-wearing phase. I’m pretty sure if Leo doesn’t come pretty soon that I will be sick of all the stuff haha I did find a maternity dress at Goodwill this week and grabbed it! So much of the cute stuff I have is stuff I’ve borrowed and will have to return so I will be thankful for something cute to keep!
Movement: Still plenty of hiccups and plenty of movement. It used to ALWAYS be on my right side but now I feel it on both sides often. I think poor kid is just out of space!
Sleep: I slept HORRIBLE on Wednesday night and I really think that’s a lot of the cause of my labor like symptoms on Thursday. Like I was legit up all night. I just don’t sleep well when Zach is gone and I think combined with being this pregnant it just wasn’t a good mix. Thankful he’ll be HOME each night from now on!
Cravings: I ate quite a few cherry pop tarts this week as meals. I know, not that healthy. But again with Z gone I wasn’t about to cook some big dinner (not that I’ve been doing that very often anyways here lately! All my cooking has been going towards meals to freeze!). I also have started to want ice cream! So much so that I surprised the kids with a stop at Bruster’s on the way home from golf camp on Thursday! It was A-MAZING! Another thing I’m loving is vanilla wafers 🙂 If I could choose to eat three meals before this baby comes I’d really like to have: Chicken Salad Chick, Aligatu, and Mexican 🙂
Things Accomplished This Week: Oh y’all! I am SO ON THE BALL this time. I mean seriously I’m SO prepared that I think this baby will go late just b/c I’m almost too ready for it to arrive haha!
This week I really tied up pretty much all the things I was hoping to accomplish. Anything else at this point is pretty much bonus! I made and ordered all the blog books from 2013, I printed off all the address labels for the birth announcements, I put all the pics I could in the baby book and filled out as many areas as I could in it, I wrote out instructions for whoever watches the kids when the time comes, I got their stuff completely packed for the night Z and I stay in the hospital, I only have 3 meals left to make and freeze, I got ALL of my stuff COMPLETELY packed for the hospital (Thur night I was so worried that I was in labor that I even made my peanut butter crackers to take haha). I also have ordered all of Zach’s birthday stuff (his bday is Aug 7th…so mega close to my due date) and I made the little thank you treats for the nurses.
I used the same printables and materials from last pregnancy. I did only half the amount I made last time (16 total) and I think it’ll be plenty! They were quite the little project and I just told Zach and Jordan that they are NOT for them haha. I’m sure that last time around most of them got eaten by the hungry men in my life 😉 Didn’t they turn out cute? You can see how to make them for yourself here!
Also this week I went ahead and had the kids make their cards for the baby! I did this last time with Kye and he enjoyed it and brought it up to the hospital to give to Britt. They both had a great time making them (Kye obviously more than Britt…he just LOVES crafty stuff) and are excited to visit with the baby! I made a little stack with the cards, outfits for them to wear when they come visit, and the big roll of paper so they can make a “welcome home mommy and baby” sign for the garage door 🙂 I am SUPER pumped for them to get to help complete the nursery while I’m in the hospital. I think it’ll be the perfect way to help them transition to welcome the new baby and give them something to be excited about. Kye cannot WAIT!
Britt used this new-age artistic design where she wiped down her card with a baby wipe!
I am a hardcore kids sale junkie and am SO BUMMED that the kids sale is Aug 2nd. I still went ahead and got a seller number (and plan to price my stuff before baby comes if I can) and I still plan to try to go to the sale. It’s where I get 90% of my kids clothes so I really do want to be there if I can make it work! We’ll just have to see when Leo arrives 🙂 Since I’m not sure if I will be able to go or not I’ve been trying to keep an eye out for good deals over the summer for the kids school clothes. Hello…why have I not been shopping at Good Will?!?! Check out this adorable Tommy dress I got for Britt for $1!
Britt and I also made a little trip down to Lake Park to hit up Carter’s. I had some returns and coupons and we were able to get her a dress, a pair of pants, two tops to match, two necklaces, two bracelets, a sweater for Kye and a t-shirt for Kye for only $22! Such a steal! I love having a little shopping buddy and it was a nice way to end our time together while Kye had golf camp 🙂
What I Miss: Nothing! I’m truly just READY and WAITING for this baby to come on!
Best Moments of the Week: I had such a sweet, thoughtful, and wonderful surprise come in the mail! My sweet friend Catherine sent Leo some books!!! Books make such a great gift and it’s nice that Leo will have some of his or her own 🙂
Zach and Jordan started up a men’s basketball league last summer and have done it again this summer. The wives of the players aren’t too big of fans of the whole thing. I mean Zach is gone from 5-11 every Tuesday night. However, I wanted to show support so I took the kids this week to watch his game! It went SO well and anytime I see him play a competitive sport it brings back all those memories from the football days. It was also SO neat that the kids got to watch him. Kye especially enjoyed it and I know it made Zach so happy to have us there 🙂
I had a list of “summer things to accomplish” and have been working this summer to knock them off before Leo arrives. This week I completed the LAST thing on the list!!! We had our annual fire station visit and it went wonderful! Several new moms joined us who haven’t come in the past and I think everyone had a great time!
We even went to CFA after and stayed there for two hours! We ate and played and got ice cream and I enjoyed getting to visit with several of my favorite friends 🙂 It was a great day and probably one of my favorite memories from this summer!
I can’t believe all our kids our old enough to be sitting at their own table together!
This week also ended Kye’s golf camp. It’s been a 5 week long thing so I was pretty ready to be done with the driving him there and picking him up situation. But he has LOVED it SO much. It’s probably the most excited I’ve ever seen him about something! He had a BLAST and the last day they had the kids stay out there for 3 hours. They played 9 holes and had pizza. When I walked in to pick him up all I saw on the table was pizza and 2 liters of sodas. I was like “oh great, Kye has now officially had his first taste of soda!” Turns out Kye told the guys that he wanted lemonade and told them he’s only supposed to drink water, white milk, or lemonade! He even told me “Mom…they were drinking those bad drinks!!!” haha. I love that he knows our house rules and that he isn’t embarrassed to speak up about it! I am SO glad we enrolled him in the camp and it has made my heart so happy to see him love something so much!
Of course the BEST thing about this week is that my husband is back home and that I DID NOT go into labor without him here!!! I am also thankful for my great appointment on Friday and that things are going so well with my pregnancy! You can read about my appointment here!
Questions/Concerns:
- I know it’s just part of the labor-is-coming game but oh my goodness the pressure and pain in my private areas! WHEW! I’m not sure if there is anything I can do to stop it?!?!
- I’m feeling pretty good about everything overall! I’m still a little nervous about how the timing of everything will work out with the kids and all, but I trust that it’ll be fine. I’m also still concerned with school and how they will get there and home each day!
Goals for This Week:
- Use birthing ball
- Practice relaxation each night
- Get house deep cleaned
- Finalize with Mema that she’s on board to help with kids if Jordan can’t.
- Continue to get things done!
Belly Pics: I had to have Jolee take my pics for me in McDonald’s haha. I think this first pic is pretty awesome b/c a) I’m next to a bathroom and b) you can see Brad in the window! How funny that we ran into him there esp b/c we NEVER go to McDonald’s!
Notes from Past Pregnancies: Here is my post from Britt! It’s crazy to me how much different I look from last time to this time. I mean my belly stuck OUT so much more that pregnancy and this time it’s more WIDE. My boobs were much smaller last time, as was my FACE! I just look so much more puffy this time around!
Britt is acting JUST LIKE Kye did at this point! She is MEGA clingy to me and all week just wanted me to lay in the bed with her after nap and cuddle. I def haven’t minded that!!!! But her behavior is worse too (just like Kye’s was prior to her birth) and i’m thankful I already have experienced this and know she will adjust fine once the baby is here.
I laughed when I mentioned in Britt’s post that for both of my pregnancies my nesting is this uncontrollable urge to BUY STUFF. It’s true this time around too. I’m SO thankful we don’t find out the sex b/c I’d be buying clothes like a mad woman! Instead I stock up a lot on groceries, baby products, etc. Zach has been a really good sport about it, thankfully 🙂
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Hi, love all your posts. I too was a hard core baby wise girl. I also had the problem of having my 3rd baby when my twins were in 5 day a week 9-1pm preschool. I hated it but my youngest was a car seat napper. Her morning nap was to and from preschool, luckily they have a carpool line to drop off and pickup. I hated the feeling that she didn't sleep as well as her brothers. Sorry I don't have any suggestions that help but when you are blessed with lots of children there are some drawbacks like the youngest not having perfect naps or mealtimes but hey…isn't the positives of having siblings and a larger family worth it. 🙂 I would say try to let go a little of perfection in the naps and just realize the benefits are worth a non-perfect nap schedule. I can tell you are a perfectionist so it will be hard. Your family is lovely and you all will get thru it. I stress about the little things too. So I need to retread this to myself next week when I am messing up my youngests afternoon nap all week so my older ones can go to a favorite soccer camp. Gotta give a little leeway so my older ones can get to do something they really want to do. Tough mommy stuff! 🙂
I so enjoy all your posts I know you don't know me and I don't you except through crissy and seth.i'm just a mother,grandmother,and great grandmother,who loves seeing you younger ones doing a awesome job on raising your children,and I think we have another girl.😊
I've been a reader of yor blog for about a year and i don't think I've ever commented! I have three daughters and all three pregnancies were SO different, so I agree it's not a good way to tell what the baby's gender will be! I so had a ton of pressure and some swelling down there during pregnancy number three. I hated it!